Gears of the Old Origin Stories
by McToaster
Summary: In the best attempt possible, I'm going to try and capture the events going on throughout the Locust war through the perspective of the main characters of the Gears series.(Ex. Hoffman, Marcus, Baird, and others). I will also be adding my own ideas on how the planet Sera works, like the calendar and its seasons, while also describing a basic history of human life on the planet.
1. Hoffman at Anvegad (Late Locust War)

**Anvegad(A.K.A Anvil Gate), A.E. 16, 7** **th** **of Storm, 10 a.m.**

It was mid-morning when Hoffman woke up to the sound of local birds cheeping. It had been months since he had heard such natural noises surrounding him. The fresh scent of cooking loafs filled his nostrils, although he knew these loaves largely consisted of hay mixed with little flour just to make rations stretch. As he pulled himself out of his cot, he found that his old age was setting in faster then he had liked. He was not the young NCO he use to be when he was stationed in Anvil Gate the first time. No, but he was a wiser and stronger officer then the last time.

Like clockwork, his tough South Islander woman came through the doorway of there utility-closest turned room to greet him.

"Hey, looks like the ol' man finally woke up." Bernie said teasingly.

 _Shit. How lucky was I to end up with this woman? The woman I was forced to separate with just to become an officer. Isn't a day that goes by that I don't consider myself lucky to have been stuck with her over any of the woman I've been with in this horrible hell we've all been through._

There was always a special feeling in the air when Bernie and Hoffman could have some one-on-one time. It was a mixture between romance and awe. Awe in the sense that both of the individuals had been through almost twenty consecutive years of war and had been able to find one another even after being separated for so long.

"Well I'll be damned, if it isn't the Boomer lady herself here to greet me good morning." Hoffman wasn't known to be a joking type of guy to many of his peers and commanders. Matter of fact, Hoffman was seen as the no-bullshit kind of guy and no one would have ever guessed that he had a playful side to him. It was Bernie who brought that tiny amount of playfulness that Hoffman had locked away.

"Sorry to break this to you so early, but while our morning has been quiet, our afternoon is about to get very busy. Baker just reported in that at least two battalions of grubs are moving in from the North. It has also been supported that Siege beast are also close behind them. Looks like we are going to need to prepare a little."

Hoffman ran his hand over his bald scalp, remembering when it at least had thinning hair that he took care of even though he knew it was vain to. The grubs had been quiet for some time. It came to no surprise that they had assembled such a large force with the support of artillery to attack them. They would be upon them by nightfall and that would be when they strike at full force.

"Call Martinez and tell him to assemble the Gears in the Bazaar. I'll need to make sure everyone is on the same page before these bastards hit us hard."

With a simple nod, Bernie left the room to go to Ops. Hoffman found a brief moment where, although the armor covered most of her body, he couldn't help but catch a glimpse of her figure. Catching himself, he quickly put on his own gear and made his way to the mess hall to grab a quick meal.

 **-2 Hours later-**

400\. That was how many Gears were left to defend Anvil gate. Over half of these men and women were only locals and civvies trained to be Gears, not actual conscripts. That didn't mean they were any less experienced or worth less, anyone who could fire a gun and fight the locust was a valuable person and Hoffman would make damn sure he would not let anyone with that kind of value go unnoticed. Martinez had rounded up all the Gears in the Bazaar and soon after the last of the Gears had shown up, Hoffman and Bernie made their way to the small stage in the center that was once used street show artist and the like, but now was used a meeting place to prepare those who now called Anvegad home. Hoffman cleared his throat and with that every Gear in ear distance instantly became silent.

"Alright Gears, we all knew that our time to sit around and not do shit would come to an end. The locust are moving in on us and will be at our doorstep by the time we all usually head to bed. We are outnumbered 2 to 1 and are going to be facing artillery fire as well as Mulcher and Boomshot fire. We need everyone to man their stations and hold their positions no matter what. This isn't our first firefight here, we all know how difficult it is to take this fortress once someone sets up here. So why don't we teach these grubs a lesson and show them what the COG is made of?"

The speech was met with applauds and screams of approval. Hoffman was never the politician type, but he did know how to get his men ready to fight for their lives. The last battle with the locust haunted him though, as he could remember the screaming of those dying throughout the fight and the amount of civvies and Gears he lost. He wouldn't let that happen again. This was the closest place he could consider to being his "home" and he wasn't about to let the grubs shit all over it. It wasn't only about him though, as he valued the lives of his Gears and the civvies he looked over also. Whether he liked it or not, Hoffman had turned from being a leader of just soldiers to the overall leader of the Anvegad community. With so much on his mind, Hoffman escaped to his private quarters to think about the battle to come.

 **-8 Hours later-**

It wasn't the sound of the War horn that informed Hoffman of the Locust arrival. No, no it was the different feeling in the air. It was the awkward shift from a cool and dry winter night, to a silent and chilly winter night. Hoffman could feel the atmosphere within the fort change, he knew that everyone was on edge. Five minutes past before the sound of gunfire could be heard and suddenly the whole base seem to be under attack. As quickly as possible, Hoffman grabbed his Lancer and ran to the front wall. Thoughts clouded his mind as he ran.

 _What if I lose Bernie? What if they breach that last defense? What will happen if I die?_

Hoffman swiftly put all the negative thoughts to rest as he remembered one thing. He was alive. He had outlived one war and was kicking grub ass in another. The Colonel knew he was one tough SOB, and it would take more then a couple negative thoughts to put him out of commission.

As he found his way to the front wall, he could hear how tough the night ahead of them would be. But he could also feel something, something much larger and heavier then a Siege Beast. The vibrations in the ground got stronger, but the sound of gunfire drained any potential noise that could be coming from the source of such a large amount of ground movement. They wouldn't know until it was upon them, what the Locust had in store. Hoffman hugged the wall in front of him and laid down fire on the grubs bellow. It would only be a matter of minute before he and the other Gears realized what was in store for them.


	2. Baird and Seras History 1

**Inside a small office on one of the minor Southern Islands, A.E. 20, 10** **th** **0f Bloom, 12 p.m.**

You'd think that after three years of grub free peace( Well relative peace, considering the large amount of stranded and U.R.I refugees that refuse to integrate into a normal society) that someone other then myself would prove to be a part of the worlds already very small one percent of geniuses. I guess I was wrong! Yeah, that's right, I, Damon Baird, am part of that one percent and am proud of it. But apparently because I have a knack for fixing electronics and other shit, people think that I am good at everything.

That brings us to our issue at hand. I am a mechanic, not a historian, not a politician, and sure as hell not a teacher of any subject other then probably a crash course on how to be an asshole. So this is what I don't get, why am I in charge of both recording the history and present state of Sera? I know my way around an engine block and how to hack the highest grade security systems that are still functional, but writing about the past and present of Sera? I think I drew the short stick on this one.

Anyway, enough of my bitching, I'm sure whoever reads this will hear plenty more since I get to record and put down what best suits my interest and skip the other crap. I guess that's a bright side to possibly being one of the last geniuses on Sera, that or I'm utterly doomed thanks to the fact that I'm surrounded by idiots who either know how to tend farmland or load a Lancer and probably nothing in-between.

Ah I'm getting sidetracked again. Lets get down to business!

 ***He fiddles with the pre-E-Day voice recorder and after a couple adjustments the red recording light flashes on***

Ahem! Alright kiddos, its time to learn some history with good ol' uncle Baird. Ah, no that sounds pretty creepy. Fuck it.

 ***He clears his throat***

Baird here, Entry number one on Seras history. Turns out that even in the historic period of the Era of Armageddon that the humans who inhabited this planet weren't complete morons! That's right everyone, the calendar we use was created around the same time as the human race was facing the brink of extinction! Aren't we just the most sophisticated beings you've ever witnessed? Sorry, my smartass comments don't always sit well with others so let me share a little more information with you about the calendar. There is four seasons on Sera, winter, spring, summer, and fall. There is eleven months within the span of a single year, each month ranging between 41 and 43 days. Each day consist of 26 hours, with most of the 457 days of the year being split even between 13 hours of daylight and 13 of night time. The months of the year go in this order:

 **Storm**

 **Gale**

 **Thaw**

 **Rise**

 **Bloom**

 **Heat**

 **Bounty**

 **Harvest**

 **Reap**

 **Frost**

 **Brume**

Now, the order in which these months were placed on the calendar we use today is of much debate on whether it is the correct version, but I mean honestly after how much damage the grubs did on E-Day I think it's fair to take what we can get. But like always, Baird is an asshole for pointing out the selfishness of those who contribute far less to society and advancements in technology that bitch about the small things like how a calendars months are arranged. I'm getting ahead of myself again. Since I was so pleasantly informed of my need to create educational and historical recordings on Sera at such a short notice, I am only able to present you, my crappy little listeners, with a dumbed down explanation of our calendar and when it started.

 ***He shuts the recorder off***

 _I can't believe Marcus and the others have me doing Bairds little fun time educational recordings. I should be out kicking stranded out of their shitty caves and working on fixing up broken electronics. Maybe I'll work on that bot I found awhile back, still haven't decided on what it should be called. Maybe it can be called Deebee for now, it'll just be my inside thing. How vain do I have to be to nickname a robot after my initials? Eh, it's the least I can do since I'm probably the only one left contributing anything to further technical advancements._


	3. Marcus and The Interrogation

**COG Forward Base(Somewhere in the Republic of Tyrus, 13** **th** **of Heat, A.E. 10**

 _ **Marcus Fenix**_

My father always told me it was a Gears job to put his life on the line to defend his country, home, family, and brothers in arms. My father was a liar. I've learned much more in these last 10 years then I ever learned from my father. I still can remember his blue ice cold gaze he gave me. Mother told me it was the Fenix gaze. Sometimes I thought about what I could have been had I not been stupid enough to enlist in the COG. But I knew it was my fate, and I knew my father, no matter how he felt about it, was proud of me for joining. I'm not here to gripe about the past though.

It has been 10 years since Emergence day and everyday has been a struggle to stay alive. There hasn't been much time to consider the future, especially when everyday there is a chance a loved one or a close ally will die. Fuck, I couldn't imagine what would happen if I lost Anya. I treat her like a damn kid out here even though she's had experience fighting the grubs. Nothing is promised in this world anymore. Anyone who can load a weapon and aim it straight enough to kill a grub is made useful. The COG is not what it use to be. It isn't a fucking surprise though that men like Chairman Prescott are trying to run the COG as if it isn't completely disbanded. I wear the armor of the COG with pride, but I don't support the route in which it has chosen to follow since E-Day.

Today isn't a day to align my allegiance though. It was just yesterday, for possibly the first time, that Dom and I caught a grub alive. For fucks sake, I didn't think it was possible or even worth it considering the fight the asshole gave us. We'd always heard the grubs speak very broken sentances when we were caught in firefights, but never had we met one like the one we have held up in a cell right now. Dom has been in the cell trying to beat some answers out of him, but grubs aren't as weak as humans. I'd seen them beat a man to death with his own arm. They were fucking ruthless, but they misjudged humans on what they could also do.

"Dom, what's the report?"

"I'm sorry Marcus, I couldn't get him to break." Dom looked Marcus in the eyes, meeting the blue icy glaze with that of a man who'd been through hell and back himself.

"Alright Dom, Thanks. I'll handle it from here." Marcus put his hand on Dom's shoulder and after a brief resting period, patted his shoulder and entered the cell.

 _It doesn't get any easier. No matter how many men or grubs I kill, personal interrogation is never easy. Dom was a Commando for fuck sake and he couldn't break this piece of shit. What makes anyone think I can? I might be a Fenix but I'm not invincible and sure as fuck not the hero I'm made out to be by everyone._

As Marcus entered the room, the grub, who was chained to the wall, smiled or at least whatever there version of a smile was. It wasn't surprising that the grubs knew who Marcus was, not many Gears had lasted as long the members of Delta squad. Marcus had earned a reputation among humans as being a tough son-of-a-bitch , that same reputation had carried over to the grubs.

"Marcus Fenix, the famous ground walker." The grub growled as he talked, making it hard for anyone not close to him to fully understand what he was saying.

"Listen here fucker, you assholes have killed more of my family and friends then I can handle, but one thing keeps me going. You know what that thing is? The will to end the Locust for what they've done. So your going to tell me right now where the hell your forces are heading towards!" Marcus was losing his temper quicker and quicker every moment.

"I'll say nothing to you, groundwalker." The locust snarled and stared at Marcus with the same icy stare Marcus used on everyone he dislike.

This had been the snapping point for Marcus though, without thought he shot the grub in the head. It was so sudden that Dom rushed to the interrogation room to see what had happened. Marcus exited the room, wiping the blood off his face from the backsplash of the shot.

" No more fucking prisoners, make sure no one knows about this and don't worry about the body. Cole and I will get him later."

Marcus turned away from Dom, but Dom had notice something when he was turning away. The icy stare in his eyes was gone, just for a brief second. This was proof that the Locust and war had affected Marcus more then anyone could have thought. As his best friend, no more like his brother, Dom knew not to press Marcus to talk about his feelings, but he also knew he couldn't just let him suffer. Dom would wait till later though, as a Locust attack was imminent and they would need to be prepared for when that moment came.

The COG records during the Locust war never included any information on the interrogation of Locust prisoners for information regarding military plans and bases. However, Delta squad and other veteran squads did attempt these methods in an effort to get ahead of the Locust. In a desperate time, the COG were willing to try any means necessary to save the lives of the dwindling human population of Sera. The new COG has hidden the secrets of the old COG, hiding the truth of many different events that took place during the Locust war.


End file.
